


How to Raise Your Dragon

by dorkium_sphere



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Dragons, Gen, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Season/Series 03, Zuko Angst, Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck, but he is still the best parent!!, journey to healing, kinda accidental dragon acquisition, the angst got away with me, the fire bending masters, this was supposed to be a funny story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2019-04-27
Packaged: 2019-09-19 14:37:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17003529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dorkium_sphere/pseuds/dorkium_sphere
Summary: This is a story of a birth, of growth and of healing. This is a story of how Zuko got stuck raising a dragon - a supposed to be dead species, while keeping him a secret from the world. And oh, have I mentioned that he just joined his former enemies?Come, and follow Zuko on his journey of how the accidental acquisition of a baby dragon helped him come to terms with himself and helped him heal wounds he never realized he still had.





	1. Prologue: དབེན་གནས (Solitude)

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Amazing Zuko Fic Idea](https://archiveofourown.org/works/9538223) by [Caitsidhe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caitsidhe/pseuds/Caitsidhe). 



> Hello, dear reader. Thank you for giving this story a try. ~~(Please, please, please, don't leave!)~~  
>  Uhum... I have to admit, I haven’t published anything in nearly a decade and haven’t done much writing in the recent years. But! When I saw this super fun and cute fanfic idea from Caitsidhe (I laughed so hard reading it!!! And I still do too!), after I just finished binge-re-watching ATLA this summer, I felt really inspired. So, here I am giving this a shot.  
> I also think, it’s a shame that there aren’t many stories out there which explain just how Zuko met Druk. It also annoyed me that LOK didn’t give us some tidbits of how they met at all. Sadly, the ATLA comics haven't covered that meeting yet either. (I’m just really weak when it comes Zuko and baby Druk :3) 
> 
> Caitsidhe's work can be read once you click on the link above. (Just go read it. You won’t regret it!) Also, thank you Cait for letting me write this. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

##### Prologue: དབེན་གནས (Solitude)

_A tiny speck of warmth in an ocean of coldness._

As long as he could remember, there was always only this far, far away flickering orb that gave him warmth, keeping him alive. This orb was always there.  
There were times, were it grew stronger and there were times, were it grew weaker. It seemed like the orb was moving in a never-ending cycle. But he never worried about this cycle. He was content with how things were.

But then suddenly… the orb and its warmth vanished!

Even if it was just for a short while, he felt terror. A terror so strong, it shook his core and made the world as he knew it crumble around him.  
His only companion over the years vanished, the source that has been keeping him alive all this time, vanished for a short while. And all though he was young, it was in that moment where he knew it: He won’t be able to go on like this forever.

He could feel himself growing more tired and weaker with every cycle of the orb.  
He grew more restless, trying to get closer to the warmth he felt. But he couldn’t. An unknown force kept him away. He was trapped! He struggled and clawed, but he couldn’t get closer! He was to weak to get away!

He was devastated. And scared. Each time before he fell asleep, he wondered if he would be trapped in that place forever or would he have fallen into an eternal sleep before he could get out? Was there even a chance that that place would one day vanish? Why wasn't he able to get out of this place until now? Why hadn’t anyone helped him get away from there?

He could tell there were others around him. Others that could call out to him, reach out to him. But they didn’t, they never did.

Some of them seemed to be like him. Kin of blood – he could feel it deep in his bones. Yet they never called out to him, never gave him warmth like his only companion ‘the orb’, even though they had the same warmth as the flickering orb burning within them.  
There were also many other tiny flickers of the same origin around him all the time. Yet, none of them called to him or gave him their warmth.  
A long time ago, he came to the conclusion, that maybe they didn’t know that he was there waiting for them.

In these moments, it was a soul crushing sadness that he felt. Sad, isolated, forgotten and alone. 

A wave of dizziness came over him again.

He was so tired. He just wanted to sleep, but he also wanted to stay awake. He knew, he would fall asleep again soon, but he didn’t want to. Since he didn’t know if he would ever wake up again.  
He didn’t know it then, but in that moment, he was screaming into the dark abyss around him, screaming for help. He was desperate. He wanted to live. He wanted to be unstuck. He wanted to feel warm. He wanted-

An explosion of warmth. A shock went through him.  
He froze for a moment. Just what was this? This was so different from what he knew! But he it wasn't like he disliked it. It felt really nice. He could feel his strength returning to him. The coldness around him vanished and the darkness around him as well. There he saw it for the first time, so many different new things, that he couldn’t name back then. At some point in the future, he learned the names of the different colors he saw that day.

But in the same way as the warmth came, it abruptly vanished again. And he grew even more desperate. Only one thought was on his mind then.

_‘Stay! Please, stay!’_


	2. ཉི་ཟེར (Sun)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the sun warriors are little shits and Aang and Zuko have a heart to heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, thank you for still staying with me!  
> I apologize for the late update. Work was really busy the past months and I didn't have much time for writing.  
> This chapter is based on Avatar s3e13 - The Firebending Masters, one of my personal favorite episodes! (I could probably loop it and not grow tired of it xD).  
> Again, english isn't my mother tounge. I always do my best looking for typos and heavy grammar mistakes, but if you notice something bad, please let me know.  
> I still hope you, dear reader, will enjoy it.

##### Chapter 1: ཉི་ཟེར (Sun)

  
  


The sky was set on fire. And the mountains were cast in a golden glow. On the land, there was a battle between light and darkness. Shadows weaving between the warm hues of red, orange and yellow as the sun started to disappear beyond the horizon. Ending one more cycle of its life before it could start anew. Repeating the old cycle of day and night. Life and death.  
Zuko could feel the life of the fire waning inside of him, seeping through the cracks of his skin and fading into the air around him. Mesmerized, he kept clenching and unclenching his hands as if to keep hold of the heat leaving him.

_Fire is life, flickering like a heartbeat inside. Life is fire._

The aftershocks of this epiphany still went through his soul, still left deep ripples inside of him. After so many years of seeing fire as a means of destruction, seeing it rooted in anger, he just realized how wrong it was. And somehow, he thinks he shouldn’t be so surprised. If he would have looked deep inside his soul, he should have always known that fire could be kind as well. Looking at his uncle, he should have known. Looking at the previous Avatars, he should have known. If people as just and good as them used fire, fire must mean something more than the harbinger of chaos.

He slowly looked up and looked to his left to Aang: He also looked down at his hands with eyes full of joy. Zuko could have sworn he could even see them sparkle.

The deep rumble of a stern voice made him turn his head back. He saw the chief of the sun warrior tribe approaching them in all his red and yellow glory, his staff clicking with every step he took towards them.

“I see you have now learned the secrets of the masters Ren and Shaw as they deemed you worthy of them. And you learned of our tribe’s existence as well.”

He paused for a moment as if to contemplate a difficult problem which lay before him and had only bad means in order to solve it. A sudden frown made his face look even more grim than before.

“I fear” he began “We have no choice but to imprison you here… Forever!”

A shock ran through his spine. Wait-

“What?!” they shrieked.

Aang and Zuko looked wildly between themselves and the chief before them.  
Would they have to fight their way out after all? After they were shown kindness in form of receiving such a precious gift? It left him with a bad taste in his mouth. But they had a mission. A purpose.

Just as he began to shift his body weight subtly, the wrinkled face broke into a grin, making his face look even more terrifying. Zuko believed it was the red traditional markings all across his face that made him feel this way, and not the sudden mood swing he just witnessed. It wasn’t long until the man before them clenched his middle and erupted into full belly-laughs.

“Haha! I got you there!”

“A-ah.“ He heard Aang laughing nervously. “Yea…”

When the small monk was sure enough the old man before them was busy enough laughing over his own idea of a good joke, he sidled up to Zuko and elbowed him softly.

“Psst. Zuko” he whispered carefully. “I think we should get away from here soon. This guy is missing some marbles, if you know what I mean.”

He couldn’t help but nod silently in agreement, keeping his eyes trained on the man before them as he started to wipe tears from his eyes. Zuko coughed lightly in order to gain back attention before he took a small step forward, putting his hands together in a way that resembled a small flame and bowed respectfully before his elder. It wasn’t long before his younger traveling companion joined him on his left.

“Chief” he began, still bowing before said man. “We are very grateful for the mercy and kindness you and your tribe have shown us – we owe you. If there is something, we could do for you in order to repay your kindness, please let us know.”

For a moment, the silence that followed his proposal was deafening. Unsure, if he even did the right thing, he risked a peek upwards and saw the troubled face before him. To Zuko, it seemed like they could really help out with something. Suddenly, the chief started to speak, confirming his suspicions.

“There is something indeed.”

He turned around and waved at two members of the same tribe, who scurried away immediately, knowing what their leader needed without it being even said aloud.  
Zuko wondered what could trouble the tribe as a whole, what would occupy not only their chief’s mind but theirs as well.

“Follow me.” He said to them as he motioned them to follow. 

  
  


They obey him without questioning him. And as they made their way back down the mountains through lush forest and wide plains in the dying light of the sun, they found themselves back by the old ruins where their small journey began.  
As they ascended the familiar stairs, the pair of tribe’s men who went ahead of them came into view, concealing something underneath a thick cloth.

“Ah, I see you got it. Thank you very much.” The chief rumbled, taking the hidden object into his own hands before handing it to the startled former fire prince.

“There is a legend.” He begins solemnly without preamble as Zuko stared at him wide eyed. “That one day a true master of the flame will come by and unravel the true secrets of fire bending and life itself. They will be able to reveal the true power of our most priced heirloom!”

“O-Ok. We are supposed to find this master you spoke of and hand this item to them, then? How would we recognize them?” Aang asked as he leaned over Zuko’s shoulder to get a good look at said object but couldn’t make out anything besides its ellipse shape.

“Oh, you don’t need to look for them, since I already gave it to the intended recipient.”

Those words hit the young ex-prince hard as Aang voiced his astonishment. His body trembled lightly as he shoved the object back towards the chief’s chest as if burnt. As if keeping it close to his body would drain his life away.

“Y-You’re wrong.” He stammered weakly, not looking at anyone, preferring to look at the ground below them as he continued speaking. “I can’t be the person you spoke of. I’m not even a proper fire bending master.”

And admitting this simple truth hurt. It was as if he ripped an old wound open again. But he guessed, not even that was true: It was like tearing at a still open wound, a wound that hasn’t even scabbed over after all these years.  
For a moment his spirit traveled back into the past. Back to all the moments his father praised his little sister for her beautiful forms and fire she created, while he earned glares with such disappointment and coldness in them from the same person at any attempt to show him his fire bending prowess. The words _‘failure’_ and _‘weakling’_ rang in his ears along with high pitched laughter. Back to all the heavy sighs of his fire bending teachers who shook their heads at another mistake in his fire bending form and their slaps before making him redo them. Back to all the times he accidentally hurt himself and the soothing hands of his mother as she rubbed ointment on his skin chastising him. Back to all the soldiers and officers who laughed at him for his weakness. Back to the faithful Agni Kai.  
He was snapped back into the present by a ghastly nasal voice.

“’Course you ain’t. Seriously. Chief’s just messin’ with ya.”

“Chief” Another voice spoke up as they pinched their chief’s cheek in admonition. “Please, don’t make up such outrageous lies.”

Zuko stared up at them unblinking as the chief had the audacity to lightly push the object back towards his chest, looking him dead in the eyes while doing so and unveiled the object to reveal a dirty blob that resembled an egg.

“You dared to steal our sacred sun stone and blemish it. And it will be your duty to restore it to its former glory while no one is to know of the stone’s existence.” The chief told him. And this time Zuko knew the other was not messing around, because he recognized the ferociousness in his eyes.

“After the Comet has passed, we oblige you to return it to us – in one piece.” He continued and coughed suddenly while muttering under his breath. “Given you yourself are still in one piece at that time.”

“H-Hey wait! You can’t just drop this thing on us, after messing with my friend like this! Also, didn’t you say this was your tribe’s precious sun stone before? Shouldn’t you take care of this?”

But Zuko didn’t hear much of Aang’s outrage. His thoughts were already occupied by the egg in his hands.  
Now he recognized the object as the golden artifact he held in his hands some hours ago. But instead of a golden glowing egg with ruby red jewels imbedded in it, he held something resembling a mud-crusted blob. And he had to, what? Clean it?  
It dawned on Zuko that his knowledge on polishing things was just limited to weaponry, tableware and tea pots! Could he really do this? Maybe he could ask for advice. But his possibilities were limited, and he believed that Katara wouldn’t give him any advice even if his life depended on it. He winced.  
And then he also needed to teach Aang and give him pointers at defeating his fa- no, the firelord and evading his crazy sister too!

“How am I even supposed to keep this hidden. It’s not like it’s easy to keep secrets from Toph.” He accidentally voiced out loud while massaging the bridge of his nose. 

The chief just kept glaring at them with a hard look in his eyes, telling them he will not back down, and reminded them they asked to repay their dept.

“It is your responsibility now. You have touched the stone and put it into this state. The rest, you have to figure out on your own. Now. Be gone!” 

  
  


And with this words and ambiguous feelings - and Aang muttering _‘You just had to touch the egg, you just had to.’_ like a mantra - Zuko and Aang found themselves on their way back to the Western Air Temple on Appa’s faithful back, after they begrudgingly received some provisions for their way back. Zuko divided the food between them under the light of a candle as night has already fallen. He made sure the monk received only the dishes without meat, while he ate the rest in silence and laid himself to rest. They agreed earlier to taking turns sleeping and steering, so they will at least join back with the rest half rested.

It was some hours later he awoke, still holding a round object in his lap. His eyes and mind strayed to the egg that was resting in his lap. He should probably store it away, before it fell off the flying bison’s back once he takes over the place on Appa’s head and leaves it unsupervised.  
A small flame came to life in his palm, before he found a candle and lit it, letting the flame in his palm fade out. He lifted the egg in his hands again and kept turning it. The meager light of the candle didn’t provide enough light to assess the damage he did in his recklessness. The egg looked so nice before and now, it looked like this.

 _‘This egg and me are kind of alike.’_ He mused as he rubbed at one still golden spot absentmindedly.

He used to be royalty: Golden, bright, maybe even unblemished. His heart on the other hand, maybe always looked like the egg right now: crusted over with dirt so thick, one wouldn’t even know what lies beneath. Zuko hoped there really is good in him like his uncle said. He hoped, he got at least a small part of the golden good heart from his mother. Thinking about them hurt, but also filled him with warmth. He smiled thinking about them as he kept rubbing.

And for a moment, Zuko thought the patch he rubbed started glowing softly. But as he blinked the glow was gone. Maybe it was a flicker of the candle light?  
He shrugged, wrapping the egg up and carefully puts it inside his duffle bag as his companion suddenly spoke up.

“Hey, Zuko. Why did you touch the egg back then?”

He sighed. Oh, man. “Aang, _really_. This again?”

“Please, don’t get me wrong!” he replied raising his hands in surrender as he glided towards Zuko, leaving the spot on Appa’s head empty and kneeling right across the other side of the candle.  
“I just know you wouldn’t do this without a good reason. I mean, a glowing egg on a pedestal? That obviously screams: Trap! And I don’t believe, someone who broke me out of prison in a heavily guarded fire nation strong hold singlehandedly, would just do this without having at least one good reason.”

Golden eyes met dark-silver inquiring one’s over the light of a candle. And the pure innocent curiosity Zuko saw reflected in them, made him look away sheepishly.

“I don’t know.” He admitted with a small voice. He heaved a sigh as he carded his hand through his hair as if to tear at them in frustration for not knowing the answer to his own reasons. “I just felt drawn to it. And before I knew it, I had it in my hands.” 

He glanced towards the bag that is hiding his newest addition to his growing list of troubles. “It is – well… was really shiny.”

“Really?” The monk sounded genuinely confused. The former prince guessed he probably couldn’t imagine the appeal of riches, since he was raised to possess nothing but the clothes on his back and the gifts he will receive in kindness.  
“But, aren’t you royalty? I mean being surrounded by treasures shouldn’t be anything new to you?” 

He huffed. It sounded a bit like ironic laughter. “I guess, not anymore.” 

And as Zuko kept thinking about it, he realized this statement was true for both questions.  
He wasn’t a prince anymore, but a traitor to his own country. Someone who tasted the first loss of home and comfort three years ago, when he was banished and sent on a wild goose chase across the world for a relic from the past - someone who might not even have existed – on a more than outdated small rusty ship. With a crew full of army drop outs who received their only chance at serving their country in baby-sitting him and with meager funding. Back then, he believed he reached the end of the social ladder. But he was wrong. In a span of a day, he even lost his ship and crew, nearly died, and much later was branded as a traitor and had to flee with nothing but the clothes on his back. He remembered starving later, since his pride kept him from begging.

But he still had his uncle, Iroh, by his side back then.  
Uncle Iroh, who willingly went into exile with him even though he could have stayed in the comforts of the castle. Uncle Iroh, who was always listening to him patiently, even when his anger and frustration lashed out like a feral beast. Uncle Iroh, who supported him in his endeavors, even though he wanted to do anything but capture the Avatar. Uncle Iroh, who cried for him. Uncle Iroh, who hid him from Zhao. Uncle Iroh, who drifted with him on a piece of wood for three weeks on the open unforgiving ocean. Uncle Iroh, who begged for food in his stead, so they’d both survive. Uncle Iroh, who loved him like a true father would love his son.  
Uncle Iroh, whom he discarded like trash. 

How wrong that was.

Even though he gained back the place he once called home, his birth father’s approval and all the riches one could imagine at his disposal, he became truly poor and a traitor when he betrayed his uncle. He realized too late, that what really mattered in life were the people standing and fighting beside you. And he hoped to cherish and treasure these bonds from now on.  
A fleeting thought suddenly came to him. Uncle Iroh wasn’t the first person he cut off, there were at least two more. One of them sitting in front of him.

“Um, Aang?” He hesitated. He didn’t know how to voice his feelings. How do people do this?  
“The thing you asked me in that forest… you know…”

The 12-year-old tilted his head in confusion, eyes losing focus while thinking hard on what the former fire prince could mean. But it didn’t take long before he remembered.

“About us becoming friends, if we had met 100 years ago?” 

Zuko nods pensively. “Do you still think we could be friends one day?”

And Aang just stares at him like he had grown a second head and suddenly bursts out laughing.  
Zuko shrinks into himself. Of course, it was ridiculous! What was he even thinking? He chased that boy all over the world, only seeing him as his ticket back home, not thinking about the consequences it would have for the whole world if it suddenly lost its Avatar, its only hope! Also, it’s indirectly his fault the other nearly died by lightning and he even sent an assassin after him!  
His question was absolutely ridiculous! Why would the Avatar even want to be his friend?  
Even if he by any chance might have reconsidered a possible friendship in the future, Zuko just went and destroyed even that slim chance by asking. He’s stupid! So stupid!

Sensing the sudden tension in the air and seeing how Zuko went absolutely still, Aang realized, he probably made a huge mistake. He sobered instantly.  
“S-Sorry, Zuko.” He stammered, fishing for words to make his point come across without being misunderstood.

And Zuko waits. Waits for the confirmation of his fears.

“It’s just… We are friends already!”

And the confirmation didn’t come. Zuko stares at sincere eyes. He- He is speechless. And touched. And-

“How?” he croaks, his voice breaking.  
When did this happen? When did they become friends? How could the Avatar – no, Aang even accept him as a friend after everything? And oh God, he feels the familiar sting of tears in his eyes as he is about to cry. 

Aang’s eyes widened in shock and started to panic for a short moment. He has never seen Zuko this close to tears before and with shame he realized, he maybe thought Zuko wasn’t capable of crying.  
His expression softens as he lays one of his hands on Zuko’s hand tightly to comfort him. In that moment, Aang truly understood for the first time how much guilt Zuko felt for his actions. So much in fact, that he had a hard time believing someone could forgive him for his actions whole heartedly and that Zuko also didn’t know how to accept this forgiveness. He probably expected everyone to hate him, because he hates himself for those actions too.

The young monk also wondered for the first time, what kind of life Zuko led, before they first met months ago on the south pole. Zuko looked so sure of himself back then. Did he have friends back home that gave him strength? Did Zuko ever have friends before joining them?  
How should he explain, why he sees them as friends?

“In a way” he starts after contemplating his answer for a while. “It happened like when we faced the dragons.”

The other looked at him not understanding. Aang squeezed his hand a bit more in order to reassure him as he went on.

“In a way, we are both the dragons and the people standing before the dragons. We are at the mercy of other’s, while we are also the one’s judging people not only for their action, but also for their heart. But what is really important for this process, is to face each other with your true selves. Zuko, we faced each other with our true selves. And I saw someone really courageous and humble, someone who isn’t afraid to voice his mistakes. Someone dedicated, bordering maybe on stubborn. Someone who hides a lot of kindness and compassion.” Zuko gave him a disbelieving look.

“Oh, come on! Don’t give that look! I didn’t mean to, but I saw you feeding the turtle ducks which live in the valley the other day.” Now Zuko looked at the floor embarrassed. Aang couldn’t help but smile a bit as he squeezed his hand again.

“What I’m trying to say is, you are more than worthy of my friendship! I just really hope I am worthy of yours.” Aang scratches his cheek sheepishly. 

But Zuko doesn’t register the action. Only Aang’s words filled the space on his head.  
To be asked if Aang, the Avatar, is worthy of his friendship was beyond his comprehension. Why would he ask this? The little monk was worthy, worthier than anyone on this planet. A million times worthier than him. There aren’t many people who wouldn’t want his friendship – most people denying it would be from the fire nation.  
Why would he ask someone like Zuko this? Why? He wasn’t worthy.  
…But Aang said he was…

He closed his eyes, as the sting of unfallen tears was too much for him. He couldn’t contain them anymore, they flowed freely.  
He was worthy. He was given worth.

“You are.” He croaks in reply as he hides his tears behind the other hand and tries to stifle the sobs shaking his body. 

He jerks in surprise as a light body slowly embraces him and a small warm hand gently rubs soothing circles on his back, trying to calm him down. But he wouldn’t be able to calm down for a while. 

He just made his first friend. 

And Zuko swears, swears just as the first rays of sunlight dawned upon the new day, lighting up the dark skies. He swears upon every deity above he will try his hardest to be someone worthy of that friendship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Bonus:_  
>  “Chief, as much as I complain about your stupid jokes, it’s a good thing you didn’t tell those kids that we just couldn’t get that thing cleaned up.” A warrior of old said as they watched the sun rise.
> 
> “Ya, chief! But wuzzit really good to let ‘em go with the stone?”
> 
> “Don’t fret.” Their leader answered as he carded his hand through his short beard. “It’s just a stone. And those children, despite who they were, are honorable. Despite the stone’s appearance, it isn’t made out of real gold and those jewels aren’t real as well. It is just a stone that’s pleasing to the eyes without any function. It makes me wonder why my predecessors guarded it like that.”
> 
> Oh, if those fools would have known…

**Author's Note:**

> There's another passage I wanted to add to the prologue, but ultimately I decided against it. I will add it into a future chapter though!  
>   
> I also want to add, I'm using Dzongkha for the titles. I decided to stick to this language for the titles, since the name Druk has a connection to said language. It was hard to find an 'online' dictionnary, so if the words aren't similar in meaning at all, let me know. I'll do my best fixing it :)


End file.
